This week we asked the man/woman in the street how the Mayor and City Council should spend the government grant of $10M per month for one year:
Marla Alleyne, Public Sector Employee:
‘It should be spent on drains. I think this is the most significant problem currently being faced by the city. Our drainage system is in a state of confusion. Citizens must be given their fair share of the blame since they litter even though bins are provided. It is this accumulation of garbage which would often clog up our drains. Many times I’ve seen people just throwing waste right out their windows. Some of that money should most definitely be sunk into improving the state of the roads in the city. I grew up in Albouystown and I hope that the city council decides to spend some money on that area as well. Street lights are needed at the Punt Dam area and upper James Street. Those areas are usually very dark and this encourages crime. It is sad that Albouystown has been neglected.’
Hazel Austin, retired Public Servant:
‘I wish if all that money is spent on correcting the garbage problem we have in the city. Garbage is the root of most of the city’s evil since it clogs up the drains, causes a stench and provides stagnant water which breed lots of mosquitoes. I speak on behalf of the residents of the South Ruimveldt Park when I say we’d like to see the city council use some of that money to do something in our area. Every time rain falls Gaulding Alley has water and it doesn’t run anywhere. The water stays there until it turns green. It is the residents who always pool resources to address this and other problems in the area. I remember when I was a child back when Georgetown was the garden city we used to run in the drains. Monday morning when the guys sweeping you only used to see cigarette butts and nut shells but these days you see a whole mountain of Styrofoam boxes and lots of plastic bottles. While $10 million sounds like a lot of money I don’t think it will be enough to do everything everyone will be hoping it can do.’
Raquel Luther, Public Sector Employee:
‘Drainage, now that is what I hope a good portion of that money is going to be spent on. When you think about it though garbage disposal leads to a lot of the city’s drainage problems so that might have to be their target area. While I’m proud to be Guyanese I’ve been embarrassed a few times by the state of our city. I remember once I was passing by the Linden bus park with a friend from another country and there right next to the park was a set of garbage. The area is always dirty and what makes it worse is that the Parliament building is located right there. I hope that the money is spent on cleaning up the city.’
Nalisa Khalil, Public Sector Employee:
‘I think that money should be used to correct the garbage disposal problems we have here in the city. While citizens are responsible for littering the city I think this is mostly due to ignorance. If these people know how damaging littering was to the environment then I think they would desist from doing it.’
Jannel Short, Clerk:
‘The Mayor and City Council should spend that money to clean the drains. They are absolutely filthy. But I think that they should realize that central Georgetown is not the only part of the city in need of urgent works. Take Sophia for instance that place is pitch black after daylight hours. Because of this situation people from outside the area would come and commit crimes and this has been happening for a while. Sophia needs street lights and I hope some of this money will be spent on this.’
Shelton Simon, Private Sector Employee:
‘More bins are clearly needed in the city and some of that money should be spent on this. The bins available in the city are not enough. The city also needs to invest more into their garbage collection system. Presently they empty bins once a day; this should be done at least twice because when bins are full people will dump their waste in the streets.’
Benjamin Sam, retired Heavy Duty Machinery Operator:
‘There are so many things that the money can be spent on but on top of my list are drainage and garbage disposal. While I am not originally from Georgetown I’ve been staying here for a while. I stay in Lodge and I can tell you that I am fed up of getting flooded every time a little rain falls. If you ask anyone in the area they will tell you the same thing. Another major issue in the area is the fact that the garbage truck would pass and still many garbage drums are not emptied. The Lodge garbage disposal system is clearly not working properly. Linden is my home town and I can tell you that it is in a better state than the city because the people are more sanitary conscious. Back in the days you would have the constables ensuring that everyone kept their areas clean and even though the constables are no longer there the older folks have managed to teach their children. The money given to the city council should be used wisely to correct the things that matter.’
Kester Dean, Entertainer/ Musician:
‘While I am proud to call Georgetown my home city I know that more can be done and I hope this money given to the city council is used wisely. Just looking around central Georgetown you can immediately see that the major problem is garbage disposal. Another thing I’ve noticed is that certain areas are ignored by the city council like D’Urban Backlands where I live. They haven’t done the section of Hadfield Street in my area for as long as I can remember. A few years ago with the help of Swansea we had done some work to the street but it’s back to its former state now.’
Sean Mars, Vendor:
‘I sell in the city so I have first hand experience of what the gutters smell like after it rains. I hope all to God that the city council spends money to clean these drains and rid them of the garbage. As far as I’m concerned that is the only thing I want to see a section of that monthly $10 million spent on.’
Cleon Simmons, Student:
‘Some of the money that has been granted to the city council by the government should be spent on repairing the many wooden bridges located in various parts of the city. These bridges are very dangerous to residents especially youngsters like myself who would run across them and ride over them with bicycles. I hope they spend a lot of it on drainage too because I am tired of getting flooded. It doesn’t go well with my school shoes.’